Page 34 of Sins of a Scot
The men and women who had gathered around yelled at the tops of their voices, and a whole cacophony of sound rung throughout the entire street. It was nothing but encouragement for Owen, who felt alive and filled with energy as the fight continued, though it was evident, the man could clearly talk better than he could fight.
After several more moments, the man’s knees buckled, and though the opportunity lay wide open for Owen to strike him so hard he would not rise again, he controlled his temper, held back his fist, and instead, only sneered at him.
“Put me on me back, will ye? Aye. Ye cannae even stand on yer own two feet. In future, keep yer damned hands tae yersel’. Dae ye hear?”
The man remained kneeling, and breathless and bloody; he could only swipe an exhausted hand in Owen’s direction. Then a huge cheer went up from the crowd, and welling with pride, Owen thrust his two arms in the air in victory. It felt just like those fights he had won in the taverns. And this was yet another victory.
Turning back towards the tavern, Owen was enjoying the accolades and pats on the back from those he passed when he suddenly caught sight of Iseabail standing near the doorway of the tavern.
She was not smiling, nor was she happy that he had taught that piece of dirt a lesson. And she did not look as though she were about to congratulate him. In fact, her face looked like thunder, and in that second, Owen knew he had messed up.
Again!
CHAPTER TEN
While everyone around him yelled congratulations, Iseabail could only stand there fuming. With her arms by her sides, she curled her fists into a ball and, shaking with frustration, squeezed her fingers together in anger.
O’ all the stupid, idiotic, mindless things tae dae!
She had been handling it. The man was getting a bit pushy, but she had had it under control. No one in the tavern had paid her any mind, and if Owen hadn’t come along, she would have slipped away as easily as she had approached the man.
But no. Owen had to make a great spectacle of himself for the entire tavern to see. Which was the exact opposite of what Iseabail either wanted or needed.
When he finally caught sight of her, after relishing in his ridiculous victory, praised by men and women he did not even know, people who had consumed far too much ale, he was stillbeaming with delight and pride at his accomplishment. That didn’t last long though, and a second later, the smile fell from his face. Approaching her, he looked more than confused at her obvious lack of delight.
Is he really so stupid nae tae realize why I am so angry? Well, he’s about to find out.
When he was only a few feet away, she launched forward, grabbed his arm, and yanked him swiftly away to the side of the tavern.
“What the devil?” he gasped.
“Och, ye’re in big trouble now, lad,” someone chuckled behind him.
A few in the crowd, who were now making their way back into the tavern, made whooping noises, adding jibes as they went.
“She’s going tae have yer guts fer garters. Look at her face.”
“Aye, she’s nae a happy one,” another chuckled.
“Ye’re sleeping in the barn tonight, lad,” someone else heckled.
Owen winced at their words, and clearly, would have preferred they kept their opinions to themselves. No doubt he realized thattheir comments were not making the situation any better, and he was right, for Iseabail could feel her rage still building.
She dragged him around the corner, trying to get as far away from anyone as she could, and then with all the might she could muster, she slammed him up against the wall. And it did take all her might, for Owen was huge.
“What the hell is wrong with ye?” she hissed, glaring up at him.
“I dinnae ken what ye’re on about?” Owen shrugged with wide eyes, evidently still completely clueless as to why she was so angry. “I thought ye’d be happy with someone protecting yer honor.”
“I was handling it,” she spat.
“The man had a hold o’ yer wrist, Iseabail,” he argued.
“And a second ‘afore ye arrived, I compelled him tae let me go.”
“I dinnae care. It still didnae give him any right tae put his hands all over ye.”
“And o’ course, the only solution is tae make a big scene, isnae it? Ye needed tae teach the man a lesson with nae a care fer the consequences. Clearly, ye were loving every minute o’ it. Anything tae be in the limelight, right, Owen?”
